The Last of the Marauders
by Khgirl08
Summary: Remus Lupin feels nervous when his roommate doesn't show up after a routine shift of guard duty. When Albus Dumbledore Floos into his kitchen, he knows his nerves are well-placed. -Lupin fic, set mostly on November 1st, 1981.-


Something was terribly wrong.

Remus Lupin wasn't an easily frightened man. After all, he was a Marauder, if a slightly tamer one than James and Sirius. He had won many a duel, informal and formal, in school and after. He knew he was a power to be reckoned with, and as a result not many other powers successfully reckoned with him.

But Sirius's failure to return home after his guard duty scared him to his bones.

He had woken at six to set tea on for his roommate, who normally stormed in at half past complaining of weariness and chills and mussy hair. But Sirius had not come in at half past, nor at a quarter 'til. When Sirius hadn't returned by seven o'clock, a full hour after he should have been relieved from guard duty by the timely Alastor Moody, Remus had sent him a Patronus message. In another frightening turn, Sirius had not returned the message.

This had happened in the past, when Sirius had gotten involved with some Death Eaters and not been able to reply lest he give away his position or get hit with a curse in the midst of battle. Today felt different, though, and Remus couldn't figure out exactly why.

At half past seven, he stood to turn on the radio. Anything, even the amount of deaths from the previous night or predictions on how soon Voldemort would take complete power, was better than sitting around aimlessly.

But every station was silent, with only the occasional sound of static interrupting the noiseless environment. Remus cursed and changed it to the Muggle setting to see if it was just the speakers, but the crooning male voice that greeted his ears assured him that it wasn't. With trembling fingers, he changed it back to the wizarding setting. Nothing again, on any of the stations.

The feeling of trepidation growing ever stronger within him, Remus sent a batch of Patronus messages, asking for information from Peter, Dumbledore, Alastor, Frank, and even Minerva. No sooner had the messages flown through his wall did the hearth come to life with green flames. He stepped forward to help steady his visitor, but recoiled as Dumbledore's long frame unfolded in the kitchen. "Merlin, no," he whispered.

One of Remus's glowing hawks returned to the kitchen and spoke for him. "Sirius is an hour late and the radios are silent. What's happened?" Dumbledore glanced at the hawk in concern and waved his hand through it.

"Sirius hasn't come home, you say? When did you last see him?"

"Hestia invited us over for a small Halloween dinner. We came back here around eight-thirty, but he had guard duty immediately after...Albus, why are you here?" Remus swallowed and collapsed into a kitchen chair. "If it's not Sirius...who...?"

Dumbledore's face was horribly grave, and he took a seat as his hands began to tremble. "Remus...I'm so sorry. Last evening, Lord Voldemort arrived in Godric's Hollow. He knew the secret-"

These words made Remus feel the worst pain he had ever felt. His soul felt as though it was split in two. His mind threaten to shatter from the despair he was suddenly drenched in. His heart beat faster than it ever had before.

"No...no!" Remus grabbed his hair and bent in half, trying to keep his mind in one piece. "NO! Prongs, Lily, H-Harry! It can't be-they can't be gone! No!" He howled in pure anguish, a sound only a werewolf could produce.

Dumbledore hardly gave him a moment to compose himself. "Remus, you know what this means. You know that Sirius has given them away-" Remus howled again at these words "-and you know that we must find him. You know him better than any of us. Help us."

But Remus Lupin was so shaken that he was barely able to register Dumbledore's words, let alone respond. He was saved the trouble by the sudden flaring of the fireplace and Frank Longbottom's stumbling appearance.

"Albus, thank Merlin you're here. I've tried everywhere I could think of, there isn't much time left-"

"Have you found them?" Dumbledore asked loudly, leaping from the table. Remus looked up at these words; who else was missing? "Where?"

"_Black_ is at the Ministry," Frank spat, as though the name was acid on his tongue, "or rather he will be soon. They're taking him slowly, in case he goes off again."

At these words, Remus jumped from his chair and shoved Frank out of the way. Ignoring the Auror's exclamation, he seized a fistful of Floo powder and threw it at his feet. "Ministry of Magic!" he thundered, and his vision blurred with green fire and tears.

The commotion in the Atrium of the Ministry when he spun to a halt told him that something big was happening, and according to Frank that something was the arrival of Sirius Black. He made to run for the mass of crimson-robed Aurors, but someone grabbed him from behind. "Oh no you don't, Lupin!" gasped Frank as Remus elbowed him in the ribs. "There's nothing you can do now."

"I can KILL him!" he shouted. The outskirts of the group turned to gawk at the fight, but Remus didn't relent. "Let go of me, Frank! Just one curse, that's all I need!"

Frank started to say something else, but the mass of people broke open then. No less than four Aurors dragged a dark-haired figure toward the nearest fireplace, which happened to be next to the one where Remus and Frank stood. Remus blanched at the sight of the man who he once considered his closest friend, at the sound of his laugh-for Sirius Black was chuckling, and grinning like he had just witnessed the prank of a lifetime. The guards stopped at the grate, presumably to make sure he was trussed up as thoroughly as he could be, and Sirius looked around to meet Remus's stare.

"Oi, Moony," he called, laughter still ringing in his voice. "Just you and me left now, mate. We're the last of the Marauders."

Frank tightened his grip on Remus's arms, but Sirius and the burliest Auror were in the grate and gone before he could retaliate in any way. He swayed on his feet for a moment before his knees gave out; Frank supported him until he regained the ability to stand. Remus's mind was shattering again, and he wasn't sure how he would ever repair its mangled pieces.

"Remus, I just...I'm so sorry." Frank helped him towards their fireplace when he was sure he could walk again.

"We need to find Peter. He should know." His voice came out as a growl. "It'll destroy...him...what's wrong?" Frank had just gripped his shoulder more tightly than ever.

"Remus. Peter already knows." The Auror's voice was thin, scared sounding.

"Where is he, out looking still? Frank, we have to find him and let him know that Pad...that he's been caught." Frank stopped moving, and Remus turned to stare at him. "What's the matter now?"

"Peter found out last night, my friend. We don't know exactly how, but he must have found out shortly after Dumbledore himself. He went looking for Black immediately, and it was Peter who found him this morning." Frank's voice got even thinner and tremulous. "He cornered him, on a Muggle street. He...he shouted at him for the whole street to hear about James and Lily, and then he made to curse Sirius. Sirius was always the better wizard...Peter didn't stand a chance. Twelve Muggles also died, Remus, and they still haven't found anything more of Peter than a finger."

Remus stared at his friend for a long moment, nodded vaguely, and made for the fireplace. The next thing he knew, he was waking up in the infirmary at Hogwarts, with Poppy Pomfrey applying a cool cloth to his forehead. "Ah, Mr. Lupin, you're awake." She sounded tiredly pleased, something he had gotten used to during his days of rough transformations. "You've been out cold for four days straight. I was beginning to worry that you would never come back to us."

"I rather wish I hadn't," he mumbled.

She gave him a stern look, but her eyes softened when they met his. Something in them must have made her feel pity. "Albus will want to hear about this."

The matron was quite correct; no less than thirty seconds after she popped her head into the fireplace did the headmaster spin in. "It's good to see you awake, Remus."

"Tell me they've sentenced him to the Kiss," he said immediately. Dumbledore's gaze hardened slightly.

"No, I'm afraid not. Mr. Black was sentenced to life in Azkaban with no chance of parole, and he will live out the remainder of his accursed days on that island, with only his fellow Death Eaters and the guards for company. I know," he said, holding up a hand to stymie Remus's protest, "but Bartemius' ruling is final."

"He killed them, Albus!" Remus whispered furiously, not even caring about the tears that streamed down his cheeks. "He sold his best friend and his family to Voldemort! And he struck down Peter, too, and all those Muggles...and he's going to live? Everyone knows that Voldemort will have him out in a heartbeat!"

Dumbledore nodded. "Yes. But Sirius Black's fate is bleaker than you foresee. Voldemort will not be breaking anyone out of Azkaban anytime soon."

"What do you mean?"

"On Halloween, after he killed James and Lily..." Dumbledore paused to wipe his eyes, "Voldemort turned his wand on Harry. But something happened. I have my theories, of course, but none that can be proven. I believe that Lily sacrificed herself for Harry, and thus created an impenetrable barrier between her son and Voldemort. When Voldemort cast the Killing Curse on Harry, it rebounded on him and destroyed his body."

"Voldemort's...dead?" Remus asked. Prior to a week before, those words would have brought an uninhibited joy to the young werewolf. Instead, he found them to be empty, and emotionless.

"No. He will return someday, but for now he is deeply wounded. But more importantly, Remus, his intended victim is also not dead. Harry Potter lives."

Remus blinked once, and again. "Harry's...Harry's alive?"

"Yes, and aside from a deep scar on his forehead he is quite unharmed. Lily's love for her son gave him the ultimate protection." Dumbledore smiled slightly. "And I have done my part to ensure that he remains so. Harry has been sent to live with his mother's sister and her family, and will hopefully remain out of sight from the Wizarding World at large until he is ready to rejoin it."

Remus could not summon the words to respond to Dumbledore. His mind and heart were too greatly conflicted. Dumbledore seemed to realize this and patted him on the shoulder. "You need to get your rest, Remus. I'll be back this evening."

Nodding, Remus watched the headmaster of Hogwarts cross to the fireplace and Floo away, and then turned his gaze to the ceiling. Harry was alive. One last bit of light remained in Remus's life. But everything else seemed to be dark. James and Peter were gone, sweet Lily was gone, and Sirius was a traitor to everything Remus had held dear.

Sirius had been wrong. Remus, and Remus alone, was the last of the Marauders.


End file.
